Compare / Fly.io Machines vs Netcup VPS / Root Server
Fly.io Machines vs Netcup VPS / Root Server
Pre-calculated from hand-checked data — Fly.io checked 2026-08-06, Netcup checked 2026-08-06.
The short version
Fly.io Machines wins more of our comparison points, but Netcup VPS / Root Server still fits if european projects that want the most NVMe and RAM per euro and can live with German contract formalities describes you.
Price Fly.io Machines
Fly.io Machines is cheaper at every stage we model — about $12/mo even for a growing project.
Ease Fly.io Machines
Fly.io Machines is easier to get running: fly launch builds the image and deploys it; configuration lives in fly.toml and the flyctl CLI.
Control Netcup VPS / Root Server
Netcup VPS / Root Server gives you more control over the stack — the flip side of the convenience trade.
Features Fly.io Machines
Fly.io Machines comes out ahead on 8 of the 15 features we track, versus 1.
What developers say about this matchup
We couldn't find a substantive first-person discussion comparing this exact pair. We leave the section empty instead of filling it with vendor marketing or generic SEO comparisons.
At a glance
| Fly.io Machines | Netcup VPS / Root Server | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Dockerized apps that want low cost, fine control, or multi-region placement. | European projects that want the most NVMe and RAM per euro and can live with German contract formalities. |
| How deploys work | fly launch builds the image and deploys it; configuration lives in fly.toml and the flyctl CLI. | You get root on a bare server: bring your own setup; the Server Control Panel handles images, snapshots, and a remote console. |
| The tradeoff | You operate more of the stack yourself — especially the database. | Best-in-class specs per euro, but 12-month terms, strict signup checks, and an unforgiving abuse process. |
| Free tier | None | None |
What you'd realistically pay
| Project stage | Fly.io Machines | Netcup VPS / Root Server | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Just starting | ≈$3/mo shared-cpu-1x, 256 MB — About $2.02/month in Amsterdam if always on; less with scale-to-zero. | ≈€5.91/mo VPS 500 G12 — Incl. 19% VAT. 2 shared vCores, 4 GB DDR5 RAM, 128 GB NVMe, unmetered traffic. Also available hourly at €0.010/h. | Fly.io Machines |
| Steady traffic | ≈$6/mo shared-cpu-1x, 1 GB — About $5.92/month in Amsterdam, plus egress at $0.02/GB. | ≈€12.79/mo RS 1000 G12 — Incl. 19% VAT. 4 dedicated EPYC cores, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB NVMe — dedicated cores at a shared-core price. | Fly.io Machines |
| Growing | ≈$12/mo Two 1 GB Machines — Two machines for availability; databases and egress on top. | ≈€19.25/mo VPS 2000 G12 — Incl. 19% VAT. 8 shared vCores, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB NVMe, unmetered traffic. | Fly.io Machines |
Fly.io Machines pricing notes
- Billed per second only while Machines are started; scale-to-zero is natively supported.
- Egress: $0.02/GB in North America and Europe; more elsewhere.
Netcup VPS / Root Server pricing notes
- Every plan has an hourly-billed variant with no minimum term (VPS 500: €0.010/h) — slightly pricier per month but cancellable anytime.
- IPv6-only saves €0.60/month, but you cannot add a public IPv4 later.
- Non-EU locations (US, Singapore) and Vienna carry a small surcharge (about €0.90/month on the entry plan).
Our ratings
Ease of use Fly.io Machines
Pricing clarity
Free tier
Scaling Fly.io Machines
Control Netcup VPS / Root Server
Feature by feature
Fly.io Machines wins 8, Netcup VPS / Root Server wins 1, with 6 even.
Deploy workflow
| Fly.io Machines | Netcup VPS / Root Server | |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy from Git push | Partial No native git integration; the documented path is flyctl in GitHub Actions. | No No deploy pipeline — bring your own CI or scripts. |
| Preview deploys | Partial PR apps work via the official GitHub Action, not out of the box. | No Nothing built in. |
| Official CLI | Yes flyctl does everything: launch, deploy, scale, ssh, logs. | Partial The Server Control Panel exposes a webservice API; there is no first-class official CLI. |
| Instant rollbacks | Partial Redeploy any previous image; no one-click dashboard rollback. | Partial Manual copy-on-write snapshots restore machines; no automatic backups, no deploy-level rollback. |
Platform
| Fly.io Machines | Netcup VPS / Root Server | |
|---|---|---|
| Custom domains + HTTPS | Yes Custom domains with free managed certificates. | Yes Point DNS at the server; TLS is yours via certbot or a proxy. |
| Built-in CDN / edge network | Partial Anycast routing sends users to the nearest region, but there is no static-asset CDN. | No No CDN product — put Cloudflare in front if needed. |
| Serverless functions | No Machines are micro-VMs, not functions. | No Not a VPS feature. |
| Docker containers | Yes A Docker image is the deployment unit. | Yes Install Docker yourself on any image. |
| SSH / shell access | Yes fly ssh console opens a shell in any running Machine. | Yes Full root SSH. |
| EU hosting region | Yes Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt, London, and more. | Yes Vienna, Nuremberg, and Amsterdam are the core locations. |
Runtime & operations
| Fly.io Machines | Netcup VPS / Root Server | |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic scaling | Yes Machines autostart and autostop with traffic; scale counts per region. | No Manual plan upgrades only. |
| Scale to zero | Yes Stopped Machines cost only their storage. | No The contract bills until cancelled, powered off or not. |
| Scheduled jobs | Partial Scheduled Machines run on fixed intervals; full cron needs a workaround. | Yes Classic cron on the box. |
| Managed database | Partial Fly Postgres is automated-but-unmanaged; managed options come from partners like Supabase and Upstash. | No No managed database product — the closest thing is a fully managed vServer. |
| Logs & metrics built in | Yes Built-in metrics (Grafana), live logs, and log shipping. | Partial Basic graphs in the Server Control Panel; app-level monitoring is yours. |
Watch out for
Fly.io
- New pay-as-you-go organizations get no free allowance.
- Fly Postgres is explicitly unmanaged: automated but not a managed database service — backups and failover are your responsibility.
- Per-second compute plus $0.02/GB egress makes bills variable; prices differ by region.
Netcup
- Regular rates have a 12-month minimum term; cancellation must arrive at least 31 days before term end or the contract renews.
- An hourly-billed model with no minimum term exists — pick it deliberately if you want flexibility.
- The abuse team can suspend servers instantly (including Friday night) and works Mon–Fri office hours; out-of-hours phone support costs €40 per 15 minutes.
- Sign-up identity checks are strict and some orders get rejected.
- Prices are displayed including 19% German VAT — your actual VAT depends on your country.
Read the full reviews: Fly.io and Netcup. Or answer four questions to see what fits your project.